14-1-2025 (JAKARTA) The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) has condemned the treatment of a primary school student in Medan who was made to sit on the floor during lessons due to unpaid school fees, labelling the action as discriminatory.
Commissioner Aris Adi Leksono of KPAI voiced strong criticism of the incident, noting that private schools receive government funding through the School Operational Assistance (BOS) programme. “This treatment is unjustifiable and discriminatory. These funds are specifically allocated to support children from underprivileged families,” Leksono stated on Monday.
The incident involves a 10-year-old fourth-grade student, identified only as M, who was forced to sit on the floor for three days between 6-8 January 2025, from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. The punishment was implemented by the class teacher, identified as H, due to three months of unpaid fees from October to December 2024.
The student’s mother, Kamelia, 38, revealed she had communicated with the class teacher about her financial difficulties and was planning to sell her mobile phone to clear the outstanding fees. “I had informed the teacher that I couldn’t come to school immediately. I was planning to sell my phone to pay the fees so my child could receive their report card,” she explained.
The school’s foundation chairman, Ahmad Parlindungan, disclosed that the institution, established in 1963 as a charitable organisation, offers six months of free education annually. Students are only required to pay 60,000 rupiah monthly from July to December. The affected student also receives 450,000 rupiah through the Smart Indonesia Programme (PIP).
KPAI has urged local government authorities to intervene, emphasising that various schemes are available to support educational rights for underprivileged families. The class teacher’s actions were reportedly taken without the headmaster’s knowledge and violated school policy.
